AGOUR

Living and working in the Basque Country! A courageous movement in the 1970s... More than a promise, this was a reality for Jean Etxeleku, father of the current director of Fromagerie Agour. Along with five other partners, he was the one who laid the first stone of the Agour cheese factory in 1981.

« A project for Basques, with Basques. »... The idea delighted thirty shepherds in the Hélette area, smack-dab in the middle of Northern Basque Country. "Bankers" for the company during the first three years, the shepherds agreed to supply their sheep's milk and be paid between six and nine months later, after selling the cheeses... They took a risk that more than paid off! By 1984, the cheese factory was too small for them. A visionary entrepreneur, Jean Etxeleku created a metal construction company on the adjoining plot of land. Well thought-out diversification. This "second branch" meant he could build new sheepfolds in the area, and establish a Basque cheese franchise. He also sold milkers and milk tanks.